Milwaukee leads from start to finish in victory over Wizards

Milwaukee -- Ramon Sessions and Dan Gadzuric each put up a double-double as the Milwaukee Bucks defeated the Washington Wizards 109-93 on Saturday night at the Bradley Center.

After a last second loss in New Orleans last night, the Bucks took control early and led the entire game against Washington, capping off a 3-0 season sweep of the Wizards.

Charlie Villanueva’s game-high 25 points, along with the double-double by Sessions and Gadzuric, and a near double-double by Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, carried the Bucks to a decisive win, helping the team hang on to its grasp of the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

“It was very convincing, a win we felt like we needed to have,” Sessions said after the game. “Losing two in a row against Dallas and New Orleans, we felt coming back tonight this was a must-win, and we came out and did the job.”

Sessions finished with 12 points and 10 assists, while Mbah a Moute came within one rebound of his own double-double, finishing with 13 points and nine boards, five of which came on the offensive end.

Gadzuric posted his third double-double of the season, scoring 10 points and grabbing 11 rebounds in 22 minutes off the bench.

“I thought Danny (Gadzuric) was huge,” Bucks coach Scott Skiles said after the game, talking about his team’s rebounding. “He came in and got some big rebounds for us.”

After tonight’s win, the Bucks still have seven of their next nine games at home, and four of their next five games against teams with a losing record.

“Ain’t nothing like when you can play at home in a great environment like the Bradley Center,” Sessions said. “We look forward to this (the games at home), we gotta capitalize though. It don’t mean anything if we don’t get the wins.”

Washington continues to play without its All-Star point guard Gilbert Arenas, who is making over $14 million this season after signing a six-year $111 million contract last summer, but has yet to play a single game this season due to the third knee surgery of his career.

The injury-depleted Wizards, who were coming off a win last night with President Obama sitting courtside, were led by Antawn Jamison with 21 points and 14 rebounds in the loss.

Racine native Caron Butler added 19 points and six assists, but turned the ball over a game-high six times.

“It’s always fun to come back,” Butler said about playing in his hometown. “It’s been an exciting week, playing in front of the President yesterday and now playing in front of the family and loved ones today.”

Washington continued its road woes, falling to 4-24 away the Verizon Center. Tonight’s loss also drops the Wizards to 14-45 overall on the season, which is worst in the Eastern Conference, and tied for second-worst in the entire league.

Milwaukee’s strong start began with Richard Jefferson outscoring the Wizards by himself 7-4 early on. Luc Richard Mbah a Moute also grabbed three early offensive rebounds, and Ramon Sessions dished three assists, all in the first 4:18. This was all part of a first quarter in which the Bucks shot nearly 55 percent, including five of six from beyond the arc, taking a 13 point lead into the second quarter and never looking back.

With the win, Milwaukee now holds a one game lead over the Chicago Bulls and New Jersey Nets for eighth place in the East, but is also only two games behind the sixth place Philadelphia 76ers.

The Bucks have the next two days off before hosting the New Jersey Nets on Tuesday night at the Bradley Center.